Texas @ California preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 21, 2014 ) Texas 71, California 55

Teams coming off their first losses of the season get right back on the court when No. 22 Texas plays California on Friday in the 2K Empire Classic consolation game at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Longhorns were upset by Georgetown 82-66 in Thursday's semifinals while the Golden Bears fell to top-ranked Duke 87-52.

"(Georgetown deserves) a ton of credit, but for us, this is a really good game from the standpoint of having to look in the mirror and figure out who we need to be our best," Texas coach Shaka Smart told reporters. "Honestly, we weren't that good in the second half." The Longhorns, who were outscored 45-24 after intermission, held their first four opponents to 55.3 points per game, 36.3 percent shooting from the field and 28.8 from 3-point range but the Hoyas were 28-for-55 from the floor and made 5-for-11 from deep. California was off to its best start since 2015-16 before running into Duke 6-10 freshman center Vernon Carey Jr., who exploded for 31 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks. The Golden Bears went from a plus-4.3 rebounding margin to a minus-1 after getting dominated on the glass 50-28 by the Blue Devils and shot 36.5 percent after making them at a 55.1 percent clip in their previous three games.

TV: 5 p.m. ET, ESPN2

ABOUT TEXAS (4-1): Junior guard Matt Coleman III raised his team-high average to 16 points after scoring a season high-tying 22 versus Georgetown, making all six 3-point attempts and going 1-for-5 from inside the arc. Sophomore guard Andrew Jones (11.8 points) was held to a season-low six in 25 minutes Thursday. The Longhorns lost the battle on the boards 34-28 against Georgetown with junior forward Jericho Sims grabbing three after totaling 21 in his previous two games.

ABOUT CALIFORNIA (4-1): Sophomore guard Matt Bradley scored a season-low seven points against Duke, lowering his team-high average to 17.4 points, and is 25-for-47 from the field. The Golden Bears are among the nation's leaders at 44.7 percent from 3-point range with Bradley (12-for-24) making the most. Junior forward Grant Anticevich is 8-for-14 from beyond the arc after making his lone attempt Thursday but those were his only points after he scored 36 in the previous two games combined.

TIP-INS

1. Coleman's 1.91 career assist-turnover ratio would be the seventh-best in school history but he's recorded more turnovers than assists twice this season.

2. The Golden Bears are halfway to their win total from each of the last two seasons.

3. Texas defeated California 71-55 in the championship game of this tournament in 2014 in their last meeting.

PREDICTION: Texas 71, California 55